Author: Victoria. H

It’s finally here, the moment you’ve been waiting for since my last blog post. It’s the first of the Value Village refashions! And lucky for me there’s no snow (yet) so I can still enjoy wearing this poncho without freezing my tush off.

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Just one of the many reasons I heart fall is all the extra thick fashion magazines! They’re a great source of inspiration for refashions to add to my wardrobe and trends to look out for when scouring thrift stores, because as we know many past trends inevitably become in vogue again. On my last trip to Value Village I went prepared with a list and surprisingly crossed off each item! Even though I had a list, an open mind is a must since you never know what will be hanging on the racks. Subconsciously I picked items with a similar color palette, which works out great. The following pieces are numbered from easiest to hardest considering both technical difficulty and confidence in outcome. I hope you look forward to seeing the results of my refashions in the coming weeks! First up will be…

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Don’t you hate it when things start to wear out prematurely? Despite my best efforts I was having no luck repairing this grey purse. First the lining started to separate at the bottom seam. I stitched it up, no problem, but then it started coming apart on the side seams! Grrr. Then the zipper broke. After trying a couple quick fixes that didn’t last (I really didn’t want to replace the zipper) enough was enough and I was ready to toss it.

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When my pal Jolene invited me to attend an ABC Bees Home2Hive bee tour with her I said yes right away. I love learning about how things are made, especially if they’re pretty much in my own backyard and who doesn’t love honey!?

Bee Fact: There are three kinds of bees in a hive: Queen, Worker and Drone.

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I’ve wanted a longer menswear vest for awhile, so on a recent trip to Goodwill I dug into the men’s section and found a suit jacket I could refashion into a vest. I chose this jacket because it covered my butt, I liked the fabric and it has a lot of pockets. Who doesn’t love a variety of pockets!

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My sister, Halie, is currently part of an exhibition at Untitled Art Society called A Space Ship is Just a Time Machine. The reception was this weekend and she wanted to have an amazing outfit. The pants were already decided on but she wasn’t sure about the top.

Sewing Sister to the rescue! I had seen a photo that week on pinterest I thought would work perfectly with the pants. This pattern drafting was very simple and consists of two squares (for the back and front) and two rectangles (for the sleeves). Happily the muslin looked great.

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Does anyone else find the boys/men in their family are the hardest to buy presents for? I think I’m a pretty awesome present picker-outer but when it came to deciding what to get for my little bro last Christmas I was stumped. I didn’t want to give him a gift card again or money. Was there anything I could make that he would actually use? My sister and I put our heads together and came up with a useful and warm idea!